The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has once again rolled out a directive limiting resident doctors’ active duty to 12 hours a day and 48 hours a week, with at least one weekly holiday. On-call duty can still stretch to 12 hours, but in theory, no resident should be clocking marathon shifts anymore. The notice, issued on August 21, goes a step further this time: it re-emphasizes that junior residents must not exceed 12 hours at a stretch or 48 hours per week, and it instructs all Chiefs of Centers and Heads of Departments to actually enforce these limits.
This isn’t happening in isolation. The Supreme Court is currently hearing a petition filed by the United Doctors’ Front (UDF), which argues that resident doctors across the country are subjected to “exploitative and unconstitutional working conditions.” The petition has asked the Court to push all medical…
